The Kyiv Independent’s Tania Myronyshena examines why Russia’s manpower advantage is under pressure, what a new mobilization campaign could look like, whether Russians could resist it, and how hundreds of thousands of additional troops could affect the war.

Moscow's shadow war on Europe grows bolder by the day, and no one can say how far the Kremlin is ready to go. Russia is no longer only meddling in elections or hacking networks: Germany found explosives-laden drones at its Leipzig Airport in an apparent Moscow-backed sabotage plot. Russian drone incursions in NATO airspace are now common. And a Russian warship shot flares at a Danish military helicopter. The rhetoric in Western capitals has hardened, with some saying this campaign is "no longe

Twenty-five people, including two children, were hospitalized, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

The Kyiv Independent will host a live storytelling event in London on Oct. 2, bringing together its journalists and readers for an evening of firsthand accounts of reporting, working, and living through Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.

Ukraine’s largest steel company, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, said on Sept. 25 that it cannot restart steel production amid a surge in Russian strikes on factories, as the embattled sector calls for more domestic and international support to prevent its total collapse. Since the summer, Moscow has launched a widespread campaign of attacks on Ukraine’s economy to shut down key industrial centers. The metallurgy sector, which contributed 7% of Ukraine’s  gross domestic product (GDP) last year and em

A few months ago, the only particularly serious threat to Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities came from Russian and North Korean ballistic missiles. As the Ukrainian mil-tech industry and air defense units perfected their ability to intercept the common "Shahed" drones (now officially called Geran-2, although Ukrainians stick to the original Iranian name), raising the shoot-down rate to 90–95%, a shortage of anti-ballistic interceptor missiles seemed to be the main issue facing Ukraine in the upcom

The research, conducted by the Centre for Defense Strategies, a Ukrainian security think tank, and shared with the Kyiv Independent, also shows that the majority of companies supplying components used in the production of Molniya drones are not yet subject to Western sanctions.

"At our meeting, President Trump stressed that he had made his final decision: Ukraine will receive licenses to produce Patriot missiles," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

"That’s good news for Ukraine and bad news for Russia," said the EU's top diplomat Kaja Kallas, after EU countries agreed on how to unblock new money for Ukraine.

Among the facilities targeted was the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez oil refinery in Perm, Russia, located approximately 1,450 kilometers (900 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

French President Emmanuel Macron claimed the Kremlin had been waiting to hold elections before launching another wave of mobilization.

At the start of July, Ukraine's government announced with much fanfare that it would ease restrictions on arms exports. Businesses across Ukraine’s defense sector had long argued the move was necessary to help them grow and bring the country’s battle-tested innovations to the world. But two and a half months later, not a single export permit has been issued. The issue, according to Ukraine's State Service for Export Control, is bureaucratic: "At present, there are no mechanisms or instruments

One of the deadliest attacks struck northeastern Kharkiv Oblast. Six people — two men and four women — were killed, and 14 others were injured in Russian strikes on the village of Stara Hnylytsia in the Chuhuiv district, Kharkiv regional authorities reported.

Much of Ukraine's $27 billion budget deficit is related to defense spending, including the production of drones and missiles, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sept. 25.

Ahead of the U.S.-China summit, President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters on Sept. 22 that he hoped Trump would encourage Xi to use his influence with Russian President Vladimir Putin to move the peace process forward.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made the disclosure during a speech to the United Nations on Sept. 23, saying Ukraine had recently "sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea" and that one of them had tried to kill himself after being captured.

The number includes 1,590 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

Sanctions and detentions have forced 107 shadow vessels to join the Russian flag registry since January 2025, leaving them with few other options as open ship registries tighten oversight, a CREA report said.

"We are sincerely grateful to the United States for its unwavering and strong support of efforts aimed at the return, rehabilitation, and full reintegration of Ukrainian children and young people," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.

"We are shaken by this evil," President Volodymyr Zelensky said after a Ukrainian man killed a priest and injured four others in a knife attack at an abbey in Jaroslaw, Poland.

"It's an important decision, a very important one. We've achieved a result," President Zelensky said at a meeting with leaders of the Ukrainian community in the U.S.

Key developments on Sept. 24: * Russia puts Ukraine's internet in its sights as attacks on Kyiv infrastructure intensify * Polish Deputy PM says Starlink station fire possibly Russian sabotage * Denmark warns Russia could escalate hybrid attacks against NATO in coming months * Ukrainian drones attack Russia's Rostov Oblast, Krasnodar Krai, allegedly targeting oil depots Russian strikes have hit multiple data centers and internet providers in Kyiv over the past two days, disrupting service

Gawkowski said there were indications that the fire, which broke out at the station in Wola Krobowska, in Poland's Masovian Voivodeship, on the evening of Sept. 23, may have been an attempt to disrupt its operations.

Russian strikes have hit multiple data centers and internet providers in Kyiv over the past two days, disrupting service for around 100,000 households as Moscow expands its attacks on Ukraine's internet infrastructure. Ukraine's Digital Transformation Ministry said around 100,000 households in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast experienced internet problems following the Sept. 23 drone attack, as specialists worked to assess the damage and restore stable service. "This is the beginning of a phase where, sin

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that Russian air defenses intercepted and destroyed 40 Ukrainian drones over several Russian regions, including Rostov Oblast and Krasnodar Krai, overnight on Sept. 24.

"I can't die now. I still need to do the Russia sanctions," Lindsey Graham joked hours before his passing. Nine weeks later, the bill bearing his name became law with the U.S. president's signature. Reflecting the wishes of the American people, Congress placed a very large stick in the hands of the executive: tariffs of up to 100% on the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas. It will matter only if Trump swings it. The Senate passed the measure 86-11 and the House 262-159, a rare show of bipa

Xenia Fedorova ran RT France from 2017 until it was forced to shut down by EU sanctions.

Two people were killed, and another 8 were injured as Russian ballistic missile explosions rocked Kyiv overnight on Sept. 24.

Ukrainska Pravda cited records from Austria’s Central Register of Residents. According to the register, Kravchenko and his wife are registered on 7 Jordangasse, apartment 12 in downtown Vienna.

The Danish Defence Intelligence Service (DDIS) said Russia had become increasingly willing to take risks as the security situation in Europe deteriorates.

Canberra also announced a 60 million Australian dollar ($42.2 million) support package for Kyiv.

This November marks a milestone for Ukrainian literature in English translation — and especially for Ukraine's literary legend Yuri Andrukhovych. Andrukhovych's novel "Radio Night" will be the first contemporary Ukrainian novel published by New York Review Books, which boasts one of the most diverse and well-curated literary catalogs in English-language literature. They previously published his poetry collection "Set Change," which features verse from the 1980s and 1990s, in 2024. A publisher